Coffee & Cycling - The Inextricable Link

The Grimpeur Bros. have talked a lot about the inextricable link between cycling and coffee. It’s just there, and as a serious cyclist, YOU KNOW. We might not talk about it all the time. But it’s understood. Coffee is part of the ritual of cycling.

We're are OBSESSED with that bond…just as we obsess about our bikes, components, kits, sock length, stem height, crank length, tan lines, wheelsets, etc., we also obsess about varietals, tastings, blends, burr grinder settings, extraction methods, 1:17, 1;15.6, water temperature, and pressure settings.

Our origins begin from conversations about coffee and cycling while putting on winter base miles in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. On long rides up 9W or to the Orchards, we talked about coffee and cycling. On our way home riding through the buzzkill that is Riverside Drive, we talked about coffee and cycling. After we dropped off our kids at school and stopped at Cafe Grumpy in Park Slope, we talked about coffee and cycling. And today we still talk and obsess about coffee and cycling...with anyone who will listen.

We
 don’t think we’ve had any profound revelations but the link between coffee and cycling is clear. 



Cycling‘s strong ties to Italy, France, Belgium, and Spain probably have something to do with it. The sport’s traditions reside there. Oh, and coffee in Europe… we’ve had coffee in three of those countries and it was almost always off the hook...(and yes, there are good coffee roasters in Belgium). My half-Italian, Brooklyn-native brother-in-law’s espresso is just “Whoa”-worthy whenever we’ve shared it watching World Cup or Euro Cup matches or a Giro stage.

Then there’s coffee’s glorious kick. We're not morning people. But our love of cycling along with coffee’s jolt has changed us into a “kinda” morning peeps. We’ll regularly wake up pre-dawn to ride or train. And those chocolate bomb or citrus-finish espressos — or those complex, full bodied pour overs are an essential part of our early morning ride rituals. Coffee wakes our asses up first thing. Coffee gets us going after intervals in Prospect Park or hill-peats on West Lake Hills climbs.

And on weekends, a post-race coffee or mid-ride espresso break, gives us the opportunity to take a break, share some gossip, nosh on some baked goods, and most importantly, share a laugh and enjoy our friendships — all over coffee.

Coffee fuels our conversations about how tired or hungover we are, what route are we taking, who’s late, etc. Great coffee influences where we’ll meet, our route planning. and where we’ll take mid-ride breaks. Great coffee makes our conversations about that climb…the sprint to the state line…how everyone’s legs feel…Thursday night’s crit…better.



Let us put it to you this way: Would our conversations be the same if we drank water instead? Tea? Soda? Sports drink of choice? Beer? OK, you got us there. We love beer, too. But beer is best savored after a long day in the saddle.

But coffee revives you. Coffee warms you up after those cold, wet winter descents. Coffee gives you legs to get home when you are spent. Coffee gives you focus. Coffee makes you pause and savor the experience. Done well, in all its forms, coffee tastes phenomenal.

Coffee makes almost any cycling experience better.

Share your experiences your thoughts on the link between coffee and cycling on our Grimpeur Bros. Facebook page.

Ride your bike. Drink great coffee.